"Leave No Trace" is a crucial ethos in the hiking, camping, and backpacking world. It means that we should leave the place we explored in better condition than we found it. This includes leaving no trash, using available bathrooms or digging holes for our needs, avoiding spray-painting or vandalizing a slot canyon or any natural feature, and avoiding excessive cairn building.

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Leaving no trace is essential because it helps preserve the natural environment and maintain the pristine state of the wilderness for future generations. It also helps us to connect with nature more authentically and experience it as it is, rather than as a human-altered landscape.

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Some people get outraged when they learn that building excessive cairns is forbidden. However, it's important to remember that excessive cairn building can harm the natural environment in several ways. First, it disturbs the natural habitats of small animals by moving rocks from different places. Second, it looks unsightly and only encourages more cairns to be built. Third, cairns can mislead hikers, particularly in slot canyons, leading to potential accidents or getting lost.

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Therefore, it's crucial to avoid excessive cairn building, and if you come across an excessive amount of them, dismantle them and help keep the area pristine.

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To reemphasis, "Leave No Trace" is a vital ethos that aims to preserve wild spaces' natural beauty and ensure that we can experience them in their purest form. By following this ethos, we can protect the environment and contribute to maintaining the natural beauty of these areas for generations to come. If you want to know more about the Leave No Trace movement, you can visit their website, as shown in the logo above.

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"Take...Only Pictures."

"Leave...Only Footprints."

"Keep Nothing...But Memories"

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